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Figure 14. The architecture of the interior of the British Museum (Natural History), like that of its exterior, constituted an integral part of its scientific presentation. (Girouard, Alfred Waterhouse and the Natural History Museum, 31) Figure 15. The Boston Society of Natural History Museum (1864), a classicallyinspired building. Unlike most of its American counterparts, it was not designed for expansion. (Walter H. Kilham, Boston After Bulfinch: An Account of its Architecture, 1800-1900 (Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard University Press, 1946), pl. xxvi) Figure 16. Washington's first National Museum (1881) was a picturesque palace-like structure that exemplified the popular stylistic tendencies of its day. (Valentine Ball, "Report on the Museums in America and Canada" (Extracted from the Report of the Science and Art Department, Appendix M) (Dublin, 1884)) Pu.aov llutsl\IM VAL~ Nt.w H"'"'"" . eo .... CoLLICl Figure 17. The central hall of the Boston Society of Natural History was much more modest in scale and detailing than the the Oxford University and British Museums. (Mary Desmond Rock, Museum of Science, Boston: The Founding and Formative Years, The Washburn Era, 1939-1980 (Boston: The Museum of Science, 1989) Figure 18. The Harvard University Museum (1860-1915) was designed as a several-phase venture; the shaded area shows the phases completed in 1884. The U-shaped plan was completed in 1915, and today the museum possesses several connecting annexes. (Ball, "Report on the Museums in America and Canada") Figure 19. Yale's old Peabody Museum was designed as a three-phase project, but only the 1878 wing (the first two bays on the right) was completed. The building was demolished in 1917 and replaced by a new museum building (figure 30) on a different site in 1925. (Ball, "Report on the Museums in America and Canada") 66 SSAC BUllETIN SEAC 17:3
The architects of McGill's Museum That Dawson played a key role in the design of McGill's museum is undeniable, but it is to the Montreal architectural firm Hutchison & Steele, which was selected for the commission by Redpath with Dawson's approval, that we owe the mastery of its architectural expression and the high quality of its construction. Although we know little about Alexander Denton Steele (1840-1891), except that he had come from Britain in 1875 and practised with Hutchison until his retirement in 1890, 28 Alexander Cowper Hutchison (1838-1922) was to become one of the most prominent and longstanding members of Montreal's architectural profession.Z 9 Like Dawson, he was the son of Scottish immigrants, he was a devout Presbyterian, and his initial professional training was largely the fruit of self-imposed dedication. His father was a masonry contractor, and Hutchison mastered the trade of stone-cutting at the age of 12. As a teenager he took evening courses in drawing while working as an apprentice cutter. When he was 20 he supervised the stonework of Montreal's Christ Church Cathedral. Two years later he moved to Ottawa to oversee the masonry construction of the Parliament Buildings. On his return to Montreal in the early 1860s Hutchison launched an architectural practice that was to continue for almost six decades. During this time he was involved (usually in association with at least one other architect) 30 in the design and construction of several important buildings representing a wide range of building types, formal expressions, and construction technologies. 31 Hutchison's vast repertoire of work, much of which (including the Peter Redpath Museum) was built by his brother's masonry construction firm, exemplifies a number of commendable architectural qualities: simple and clear composition, selective and consistent detailing, and high quality construction. An examination of the buildings in which he was involved before and after 1880 suggests that he was comfortable working in many styles, and had no qualms about combining elements from different periods in the same structure, or adapting classical canons to suit the more liberal approach to architecture that persisted throughout most of his long practice. The role of McGill's museum Hutchison & Steele were already working on the construction drawings for the Peter Redpath Museum when Redpath formally announced his gift to the university. During the summer of 1880 the foundations were constructed, and the cornerstone was laid in September of that year. At this ceremony the two men responsible for its existence most clearly expressed the ultimate role of Canada's first building to be designed as a museum of natural history. Redpath, who had come from England for the occasion, 32 explained the purpose of his gift: This building is ... intended as a place of deposit and study of specimens in Geology, Mineralogy, Palaeontology, Zoology, Botany and Archaeology, and it will probably more than meet all the immediate requirements of the Univer· sity in that direction. It is intended that the use of the museum and its contents shall be in the first place for the profes· sors and students of McGill College and University, and secondarily, for all the students of natural science and for the public .... 33 Dawson then expressed his vision of the role of McGill's museum in an address that clearly articulated this aspect of his museum idea: It must be borne in mind that a University Museum is not merely a place for the exhibition of specimens, but a leach· ing institution and a laboratory of original research. ... From this place will go forth the men, and I trust the women also, best fitted to interrogate nature and bring to light the hidden treasures of our Dominion, and to avert by the aid of science the injuries with which any of its industries may be threatened. From it may emanate from time to time new discoveries tending to the honour of our country and the advancement of science. By its means we shall be able to ex· tend the cultivation of taste for the study of nature and do much in the education of special students and of the public generally in those delightful and improving studies which will be represented here. Finally, to this Museum shall resort, for education and guidance, all those who are interested in the aspects of nature in this country, and in the development of our natural resources. Thus we may claim for such an institution as this a large and important mission in science, education and the practical business of life. 34 Compared to the ambitious undertakings in Britain and the United States, the Peter Redpath Museum possessed a modest mission, one that was in scale with the scope of its collections and in keeping with its master's self-contained, finite vision of the meaning of natural history. This definition of the role of McGill's museum provided an accurate reflection of the university's- indeed, of Canada's- position in the international scientific and educational communities, and the basis for the museum's design. 17:3 SSAC BUll.ETlN SEAC 67
Page 1 and 2: SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF ARCHITECTU
Page 3 and 4: A Note from the Editor Note du reda
Page 5 and 6: A S THE FIRST CANADIAN BUILDING DES
Page 7 and 8: (1728-1792) during the 1770s, and e
Page 9: Washington (1881). These new museum
Page 13 and 14: The museum's symmetrical, self-cont
Page 15 and 16: campus for more than a century. Its
Page 17 and 18: Figure 32 (above). During the 1940s
Page 19 and 20: Endnotes More detail on all aspects
Page 25 and 26: Monuments to Faith: Ukrainian Churc
Page 27 and 28: SURVEY RESULTS • RESULTATS DU SON

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